Global Roundup: Mexican City Bans Misogynistic Lyrics and Songs, Queer Climbers in London, LGBTQ-Friendly Hospitals in Kerala, Queer Latinx Archive, Indian Trans Community Public Toilets
Global Roundup: Mexican City Bans Misogynistic Lyrics and Songs, Queer Climbers in London, LGBTQ-Friendly Hospitals in Kerala, Queer Latinx Archive, Indian Trans Community Public Toilets
Curated by FG Contributor Inaara Merani
A march for women’s rights in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, in March. The country has been grappling with a rise in killings of women in recent year. Credit...Herika Martinez/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images/New York Times.
The city council of Chihuahua, Mexico has taken a bold stance against gender-based violence by embarking on a campaign to ban music containing derogatory and misogynistic lyrics from live music venues.
The initiative is a response to growing concerns about how music can perpetuate harmful gender norms and contribute to the marginalization of women. Chihuahua is also one of five state cities with a “Gender Alert”, which is declared in areas with high rates of structural violence against women. In addition to combating violence promoted through the music industry, this bill is combatting violence against women in Chihuahua.
This ban aims to create a space where every community member can enjoy music without feeling targeted or degraded. Any artists that are found playing music with derogatory or misogynistic lyrics will be fined 1.2 million pesos or $71,133 USD. The funds retrieved from the artists will be distributed to domestic violence shelters and women’s programs.
The decision has not been well-received by everyone as it will impact the types of music that performers can play. Some of Bad Bunny’s music, for example, will not be allowed under this ban. Some individuals also raised concerns about restrictions on artistic expression, but the overwhelming sentiment is that this initiative will reshape the music landscape within Chihuahua and promote narratives about gender equality and women’s empowerment.
Gay Times.
In London, a social group has formed to connect members of the LGBTQ+ community to explore the outdoors, improve their climbing skills, and socialize in a safe environment. Queer Climbers London hosts these physical activities to transcend social and cultural boundaries in order to enforce positive change within society.
The group is a collective of individuals whose togetherness promotes inclusivity in the outdoor and adventure space. This collective does not only meet to go climbing and engage in outdoor activities together, members also fundraise together, attend protests together, and have movie nights together. Many say that Queer Climbers London is their new chosen family, as the group has brought a newfound sense of togetherness and queer joy.
Climbing with Queer Climbers London means being with other queer people. It frees you up to talk about the things that matter most to you in that moment, without having to explain or contextualise all the background noise. Growing up queer impacts so many things in our lives and Queer Climbers just get that. It means we can share new experiences, learn new things and become badass climbers. – Lip Wieckowski, climber
Queer Climbers London is hopeful that by sharing their personal insights on representation and community, this space can be built for anyone and everyone. By fostering inclusivity and togetherness, the collective is hopeful that both the LGBTQ+ community and the wider outdoors and adventure community will come together as a whole to share in their passions, rather than focusing on their differences.
Kerala Health Minister Veena George. (File photo). India Today.
The first initiative of its kind, the “Queer-Friendly Hospital Initiative” in Kerala, India strives to protect the rights of trans and queer people within the healthcare system. The initiative will also provide healthcare facilities for the queer and trans community.
This landmark legislation will be implemented in four districts across Kerala: Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Thrissur, and Kozhikode. The healthcare staff within these districts have already received proper training to ensure these hospitals become queer-friendly places, as well as safe and welcoming spaces for queer and trans people. The health minister of Kerala, Veena George, also highlighted that the Kerala government plans to extend this initiative to all healthcare institutions across Kerala in a gradual manner.
This government is truly committed to uplifting the transgender community. For the very first time, we have granted the transgender community a reservation in the nursing field. – Veena George, Kerala Health Minister
The Transgender Community Link Worker (CLW) project has already been initiated in the four districts where the initiative is being implemented. The CLW will play a role in bridging the gap between the trans community and the healthcare system. Support workers will facilitate necessary access to healthcare services while considering the numerous barriers that trans individuals encounter daily in society. The presence of CLW workers will ensure that healthcare services are delivered with care and compassion.
Members of the Gay and Lesbian Latinos Unidos (GLLU) organization march at a 1982 Gay Pride Parade in West Hollywood. (Courtesy of Louis Jacinto). Daily News.
The Los Angeles Public Library will showcase an archive of photographs, articles, personal items, and other belongings that belonged to non-binary Latinx activist and author Lydia Otero, known as the “Lydia R. Otero Archive”. This will add to the library’s existing archives which feature the works of Black artists from the 1960s and 70s, materials from the anti-Vietnam War movement, and more.
Otero left their home in Tuscon, Arizona in 1978 in order to pursue a life in LA where they could meet other individuals like themself. They became active in Gay and Lesbian Latinos Unidos (GLUU), one of the first queer Latinx organizations in the US. Otero served as the organization’s president for two years and in 1983, alongside other GLUU members, they became one of the founding members of Lesbianas Unidas.
I wanted to be public, I wanted to be out. I wanted to organize with queers of color, and it seemed like Los Angeles was the place. – Lydia R. Otero, activist and author
In 1989, GLUU launches Bienestar Human Services due to the unprecedented amount of Latinos that were dying from complications of HIV/AIDS. Bienestar still runs as an organization dedicated to supporting emerging health issues that queer and trans Latinx people encounter. Although GLUU has not been active since 1994, Bienestar became a thriving nonprofit and continues to work with Latinx and LGBTQ+ communities to connect them with health and social services.
As they spent their summers in LA, Otero felt a connection to the LA Public Library, remembering childhood summers spent there. Otero also assisted a construction crew that helped renovate the downtown LA library after a fire in 1986. So when the principal librarian from the LA Public Library, Ani Boyadijian, reached out to Otero about the department’s interest in their archives, Otero felt this was the perfect place to showcase decades of activism.
The archive, made public in a few months, contains Otero’s personal photographs, documents, meeting minutes, awards, and other miscellaneous items that Otero says tell the larger story of queer activism in LA at a time when the queer Latinx community celebrated themselves despite political hostility. And despite nationwide anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and the gender and sexuality-related book bans at school, Otero believes this is just a period of backlash, but that society has moved forwards and will continue to move forwards.
These things are happening politically. They’re dangerous. They’re restrictive. But on the ground, what I see here in L.A. (is) some young people organizing, being creative, expressing themselves through their body and through their gender, and I’m inspired. – Lydia R. Otero
Members of the transgenders community hold placards during a protest against the passing of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2018, in New Delhi, India, December 28, 2018. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi/Openly.
Across India, campaigners are pushing for gender-neutral washrooms. In an attempt to fight discrimination and provide trans and non-binary people with equal washroom access, this movement has been a long time coming in India.
Many trans people in India will think twice before using a public toilet, as they routinely experience discrimination, insults, and hostility. Trans people will opt for waiting until they are home to use the washroom in order to protect themselves. Waiting for too long, however, can cause abdominal pain and create a risk of urinary infections.
Using a public toilet is perhaps the easiest thing for a non-LGBTQ person. But for a trans woman like me, it can be ... a traumatic experience. – Leela, social worker
Last month, Tamil Nadu LGBTQ+ activist Fred Rogers filed a petition to Madras High Court demanding at least one gender-neutral bathroom in all public spaces. This petition is one of several initiatives that focus on boosting trans bathroom access across the country.
In 2014, the Indian Supreme Court ruled that trans people would be recognized as the “third gender,” allowing them to self-identify, however, this law did not change the existing prejudice and societal marginalization. Many trans people in India are rejected by their families and are denied jobs, education, and healthcare. This has led many trans women, known as hijras, to survive by begging at busy intersections and on trains, performing at social functions, and/or engaging in sex work.
Under the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, all trans people should have equal access to public services without facing discrimination, but this is not the case. Access to public washrooms has created a large, polarizing debate about trans rights across the world. In the US, states such as Florida have signed “bathroom bills” which require all bathrooms in public facilities to be used exclusively for people based on their assigned sex at birth. In India, not every household has a bathroom facility, meaning that shared and public facilities are the only option for many people. This only stresses the need for better laws surrounding washroom usage in India or the introduction of gender-neutral washrooms.
Trans persons have been historically removed from public spaces and denied opportunities to access education, employment and other rights. Making (toilets) accessible to gender minorities is a small step towards making amends for historical and systematic exclusions. – Vaivab Das, research scholar at the Indian Institute of Technology
Inaara Merani (she/her) recently completed her Masters degree at the University of Western Ontario, studying Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies with a specialization in Transitional Justice. In the upcoming years, she hopes to attend law school, focusing her career in human rights law.
Inaara is deeply passionate about dismantling patriarchal institutions to ensure women and other marginalized populations have safe and equal access to their rights. She believes in the power of knowledge and learning from others, and hopes to continue to learn from others throughout her career.